the malakim from birth, and finally King Louis XIV and Tsar Peter, both of whom acquired their affinity with the aetheric by consuming elixirs of life.
Where Swedenborg’s affinity came from, she had no way of knowing; and despite his faultlessly polite and even friendly demeanor, that made him, in her eyes, untrustworthy.
The metropolitan, on the other hand, hated her—for being a woman, for her connection to the “saints” and angels, for reasons even he probably could not articulate. His cold smile, like a slit in a pumpkin, and his bulging eyes confirmed his contempt more eloquently than even his rasping voice.
She held up the paper Lomonosov had brought her so that they might all see it.
“What is this?” she asked.
Golitsyn took it and looked over it carefully. “It appears.” he said, “to be a command signed by Professor Swedenborg, our new minister of the sciences.”
Swedenborg took the paper and nodded. “Yes, I signed this,” he murmured, almost as if to some fourth party.
“When did the minister of sciences begin assigning tutorials?” Adrienne demanded.
“It is not my job,” Swedenborg admitted, still dreamily. “But this is a reflection of a most important statute.”
“Indeed,” the metropolitan added. “You have, of course, received your copy.”
“I have not.”
EMPIRE OF UNREASON
“An oversight,” Golitsyn said. “I have a copy here…”
He rummaged for a moment through his desk, then produced and handed her a parchment. She took it and examined it for a moment.
“As you can see, it is signed by the empress and the patriarch,” Golitsyn said.
“The empress has not yet been installed. This is not yet law.”
“True,” Golitsyn said. “But it will be, and I thought it better to begin the changes as soon as possible—I assumed there would be no objection. Shall I explain it to you? We were busy, as you can see, but I can, of course, make a moment for Mademoiselle Montchevreuil.”
“I would appreciate that, especially as you promised me the academy would remain untouched.”
“It is, it will. The academy and your position in it will remain. It was thought best to make a few changes in curricula, to better reflect the modern state of science. As science is now recognized as a godly pursuit, the patriarch and empress wish to devote all of our energies—and the resources of our state— to those sciences most godly.”
“But this says that calculus will no longer be studied. Or alchemy! Or biology!
Those are important sciences.”
The metropolitan cleared his throat. “The patriarch has decreed them ungodly.”
“The patriarch doesn’t know a fluxion from his bung,” Adrienne retorted.
“What business has he—”
“Now see here!” the metropolitan exploded. “He is the patriarch, chosen by God. You will never speak of him in that manner, or—”
Adrienne held up her hand, let it glow briefly. “Or what, metropolitan? Shall we have a contest? Between you and me? Between the patriarch and me? I think we shall see who is more favored by the angels.”
EMPIRE OF UNREASON
The metropolitan hesitated at that. “You are perhaps too certain of yourself,”
he said in a quieter voice. “After all, those who command devils are not always readily distinguished from those who speak to angels.” But he did not sound confident.
“Monsieur Swedenborg?” she demanded. “What do you have to say of this? Do you agree with this nonsense?”
Swedenborg turned his odd eyes upon her. “It is time for purification,” he said.
“We are in the very center of the Apocalypse. When it ends, the world will be either heaven or hell. We must listen to the angels, Mademoiselle. We must.
Surely you know this, being so close to them yourself.”
Adrienne studied Swedenborg. Had he gone mad? What was he talking about?
Golitsyn coughed for attention. “Mademoiselle, yesterday I saw you fly into the heavens on the backs of angels. What mathematical proofs did
Where Swedenborg’s affinity came from, she had no way of knowing; and despite his faultlessly polite and even friendly demeanor, that made him, in her eyes, untrustworthy.
The metropolitan, on the other hand, hated her—for being a woman, for her connection to the “saints” and angels, for reasons even he probably could not articulate. His cold smile, like a slit in a pumpkin, and his bulging eyes confirmed his contempt more eloquently than even his rasping voice.
She held up the paper Lomonosov had brought her so that they might all see it.
“What is this?” she asked.
Golitsyn took it and looked over it carefully. “It appears.” he said, “to be a command signed by Professor Swedenborg, our new minister of the sciences.”
Swedenborg took the paper and nodded. “Yes, I signed this,” he murmured, almost as if to some fourth party.
“When did the minister of sciences begin assigning tutorials?” Adrienne demanded.
“It is not my job,” Swedenborg admitted, still dreamily. “But this is a reflection of a most important statute.”
“Indeed,” the metropolitan added. “You have, of course, received your copy.”
“I have not.”
EMPIRE OF UNREASON
“An oversight,” Golitsyn said. “I have a copy here…”
He rummaged for a moment through his desk, then produced and handed her a parchment. She took it and examined it for a moment.
“As you can see, it is signed by the empress and the patriarch,” Golitsyn said.
“The empress has not yet been installed. This is not yet law.”
“True,” Golitsyn said. “But it will be, and I thought it better to begin the changes as soon as possible—I assumed there would be no objection. Shall I explain it to you? We were busy, as you can see, but I can, of course, make a moment for Mademoiselle Montchevreuil.”
“I would appreciate that, especially as you promised me the academy would remain untouched.”
“It is, it will. The academy and your position in it will remain. It was thought best to make a few changes in curricula, to better reflect the modern state of science. As science is now recognized as a godly pursuit, the patriarch and empress wish to devote all of our energies—and the resources of our state— to those sciences most godly.”
“But this says that calculus will no longer be studied. Or alchemy! Or biology!
Those are important sciences.”
The metropolitan cleared his throat. “The patriarch has decreed them ungodly.”
“The patriarch doesn’t know a fluxion from his bung,” Adrienne retorted.
“What business has he—”
“Now see here!” the metropolitan exploded. “He is the patriarch, chosen by God. You will never speak of him in that manner, or—”
Adrienne held up her hand, let it glow briefly. “Or what, metropolitan? Shall we have a contest? Between you and me? Between the patriarch and me? I think we shall see who is more favored by the angels.”
EMPIRE OF UNREASON
The metropolitan hesitated at that. “You are perhaps too certain of yourself,”
he said in a quieter voice. “After all, those who command devils are not always readily distinguished from those who speak to angels.” But he did not sound confident.
“Monsieur Swedenborg?” she demanded. “What do you have to say of this? Do you agree with this nonsense?”
Swedenborg turned his odd eyes upon her. “It is time for purification,” he said.
“We are in the very center of the Apocalypse. When it ends, the world will be either heaven or hell. We must listen to the angels, Mademoiselle. We must.
Surely you know this, being so close to them yourself.”
Adrienne studied Swedenborg. Had he gone mad? What was he talking about?
Golitsyn coughed for attention. “Mademoiselle, yesterday I saw you fly into the heavens on the backs of angels. What mathematical proofs did
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